Onion sorting machine



I D. E. CIRULI ONION SORTING MACHINE March 12, 1946.

7 Filed Feb. 21, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet l await/(4,00 6% D. E. ClRULl ONION SORTING MACHINE 5 sheets-sheet 2- Inventor Filed Feb. 21, 1944 5 Shets-Sheet 3 l C I:

Inventor D. E. CiRULl ONION SORTING MACHINE FiledFeb. 21V, 1944 March 12; 1946.

Day/afaa/ard C/rzd/ v y M g March 12, 1946. D. E. CIRULI ONION SORTING MAC HINE Filed Feb. 21, 1944 5 Sheefs-Sheet 5 Inventor .ir Dcw/afaZ/ard C/ml/z WWW 3m Patented Mar. 12, 1946 UNlTE-D STATES PATENT OFFICE:

QNION SORTING MACHINE David'Edward Ciruli; Pueblo,- Colo.

AppHcation FebruaryZI, 1944, Serial'No. 523,333

This invention relates'to an improved. machine for usein sorting fr-uits and vegetables according tosize. While the apparatus is applicable for general use, it is particularly well adapted for use-in sizing onions in the field;

The primary object of the present invention is t'o'providea sorting machine o-f-the above kind embodying an organization and arrangement of parts whereby the sorting operation mayb'e-carried out eiiiciently and in an expeditious and substantially continuous manner.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a machine of the above kind which is compact and durable in form and construction, easy and convenient to use, and highly efiicient in operation.

Other objects and features of'the invention will become apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, and the invention consists in the novel form, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described,shown in the drawings and claimed.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Figure 1 is a top planview of a sorting machine constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2' is a side elevational view' thereof as seen looking upwardly at Figure I.

Figure 3 is an enlarged transverse section taken substantially on the plane of the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a similar view taken on line 4-4 the relative arrangement of operating parts of the machine and the drivingmeanstherefor,

Referring in detail to the drawings, wherein an embodiment is. shown which is suitable for field use, the machine includesasuitable frame provided. with. rear ground-engaging supporting wheels frontsuppprtinglegs or propsfi to afford a portable machine of thetrailer-vehicle type. Rigidly supported at the rear ofthe. frame is a rearwardly and downwardly inclined conveyor' 1 for elevating theonionscorthe like :t'oj'be sorted and discharging them onto: the' rearreceiving end of afeeding conveyor 9. It will: be noted that the elevating, conveyor I is rigidly mounted at arearwardly inclined position with its lowerend slightly above the. ground; and is provided at suchlowerend with a1-receivingyhopper 8 into which the onions or the .lik'e 'may; be conveniently dumped 'for-being sorted; The-ele.- vating conveyor T preferably consists of an end less conveying member'composed of spaced end:- less chains connected atclose intervals bytransverse rollers l 8 The feeding conveyor; 9 extends substantially the full length of the machine: frame. and is ar:- ranged at the top of said frame in? a substantially horizontal position" as wellias includingia relatively'wide endless belt passing around-Lrollers H. The conveyor 9has side's guard rails" I 2? and I 3; the former extending the full length off the conveyor, and the other'extending fronrtherrear end of the conveyor to a point spaced fronrits forward end so as to provide for side delivery of the onionsfrom this conveyor nearitsiforward end at the point where thegua'rdrail l zzis'omitted andas indicated 31314 A further longitudinal horizontal conveyor: I 5 of relatively narrow: form is provided alongone side of the feed conveyor:9; and this'conveyor I5 is provided at its forward end with asuitable discharge spout l6;

Along and slightly spaced" from: the other side of feed conveyor 9 is afurther narrow: sorting conveyor I 1 that is drivenso that the'upper flight thereof travelsrearwardly and: in a direction reversely to the direction oft'ravel of the upper flights of'the conveyors 9' and I5; A head plate is is provided beneath theupper flights of the conveyors-9 and I! at their 'forWa'rdend portions,- the outer end of said' bed plate-18 being inclined outwardly and downwardly; as clearly shown inFigure 3; This-bed plate l8 bridges the space between the conveyors 9 and I Tsoa's to lead the onions from the conveyor 9'onto saidconveyor 1. Due to the inclination of theouter end portion of bed plate I8, the latter positions the-upper flight of conveyor l7 at'an outward inclination, as seen in Figure em a purpose" which willlater become apparent.

Mounted horizontally at the outerisideof' conveyor I'l near its'rec'eiving' end'and above the adjacent. end of bed plate" I8'is' a sizinggrolle'r l9 that maybe adjusted vertically todete'rminethe size of onions that maypass thereunder; from: the conveyor IT. This .adjustmenttismade suchtha't onions of smallest acceptable size will pass thereunder and will fall into a sack-holding hopper 28 mounted on the frame at the outer side of roller [9. The roller l9 may be journaled in suitable bearings vertically slidable on guide rods 21 and yieldingly urged upwardly by compression springs 22, as shown in Figure 3. The bearings may have upwardly projecting threaded stems 23 slidably projecting through connecting plates 24 on the upper ends of rods 2| and provided wtih an ad justing nut 25 positioned to engage the under side of the associated plate 24. By forcing the roller I9 downwardly to the desired position and adjusting the nut 25 upwardly into engagement with the connecting plate 24, said roller l8 may be maintained in the desired adjusted position. Greater spacing may be eifected by simply backing the nut 25 and permitting the springs 22 to expand.

Mounted at the outer side of the conveyor l8 rearwardly of hopper 20 is a pair of laterally projecting discharge conveyors 26 and 21 arranged to receive such onions as are allowed to pass thereto laterally from the upper flight of conveyor I1. A sizing roller 28 is mounted above the receiving end of the conveyor 26, but no sizing roller is provided above the receiving end of conveyor 21. The roller 28 may be mounted the same as roller l9, and is adjusted so as to permit the passage of medium sized onions from conveyor l1 to conveyor 26. The remaining onions of larger size may freely pass from conveyor l1 to the rearmost lateral discharge conveyor 21, in view of the fact that there is no sizing roller present to restrain them from doing so. The purpose of the conveyor 15 is to receive discarded onions deposited thereon from the feed conveyor 9 by the attendants of the machine, which discarded onions are conveyed to the discharge spout 16 for deposit in a suitable collection receptacle. It will be noted that the conveyors 9, l5, I1, 26 and 21 are all preferably of the endless belt type in which the endless belts pass around suitable rollers at the opposite ends of the conveyors. Also, there is a transverse discharging strip 29 extending across the top of the conveyor l1 to the rear side of conveyor 21 to effectively guide the onions from the conveyor l1 onto said conveyor 21.

Mounted at the outer discharge end of each of the discharge conveyors 26 and 21, in side-byside relation, are two bag holders 3!) of any well known or preferred type or construction. These bag holders are arranged to extend inwardly past the opposite sides of the associated conveyor, and mounted intermediate each pair of bag holders 30 is a swinging double sided chute 30a which may be swung to either the full line position or the dotted line position of Figure 6 to lead the onions laterally into the sack or bag supported by the desired one of the pair of bag holders 30. For instance, as viewed in Figures 1 and 6, the chutes are arranged to convey the discharged onions from the associated conveyor to a sack or bag supported by the left hand bag holder 01 conveyor 26 in Figure 1 and of conveyor 21 in Figure 6. Conversely, the chutes may be swung over to the dotted line position of Figure 6 or to the full line position for the chute of conveyor 21 in Figure 1 so that the onions will be directed laterally into the sack or bag supported by the right hand one of the pair of bag holders. As shown, each chute 30a, may simply consist of a bottom wall and an outer side plate, the bottom wall being pivotally mounted at one end upon a pivot 3| extending longitudinally of the associated conveyor 26 or 21. The outer side wall of the chute 30a projects beyond opposite faces of the bottom wall and is arranged to engage the adjacent side of a bag holder 30 to limit swinging movement of the same wherein the chute occupies a desirable inclined position.

It is preferred to have a sizing roller 28 for conveyor 26 of greater width than the latter, as shown clearly in Figure 1 so as to permit the sizing of as many onions as possible for discharge by the conveyor 26. Accordingly, the projecting end of roller 28 is disposed over a lateral inclined chute 32 arranged beside the inner receiving end of conveyor 26 and arranged to receive some of the onions and direct them laterally onto said conveyor 26. Also, it is necessary to maintain the belt of conveyor l1 taut at all times so that its upper flight will be maintained in the outwardly laterally inclined position before mentioned and shown in Figure 3. For this purpose, one of the end rollers of conveyor I1 is preferably made adjustable by means of sliding bearings 33 and adjusting screws 34 for the same, as shown in Figure '7. The purpose of inclining this upper flight of conveyor I1 is to cause the onions to roll laterally off of said conveyor toward the sizing rollers or discharge conveyors.

The various moving parts are preferably driven by means of an electric motor 35 fixed upon a platform 36 mounted above and at one side of the conveyor 9 at the rear end of the latter. Any suitable gearing may be provided that will cause travel of the moving parts in the proper direc tion, a suitable arrangement being diagrammatically illustrated in Figure 8. First of all, motor 35 drives a transverse shaft 31 by means of belt gearing 38, as shown in Figure 2. Shaft 31 carries the rear rollers of conveyors 9 and I5 and is geared at 39 to the forward roller of elevating conveyor 1. Other gearing is provided at 40 for driving the rear roller of conveyor H from shaft 31, while still further gearing 4| is provided for driving the outer rollers of conveyors 26 and 21 from shaft 31. Further belt gearing may be provided at 42 and 43 for transmitting power from the driven line shaft for the outer rollers of conveyors 26 and 21 to the sizing rollers l9 and 28. However, it is to be understood that other forms of gearing or drive arrangements may be utilized, the one illustrated being merely an example.

In operation, motor 35 is put in operation so as to drive the various conveyors and sizing rollers in the directions indicated by the arrows in Figure 8. The onions to be sorted are deposited in the receiving hopper 8, from which they are elevated by the conveyor 1 to the feed conveyor 9. As the onions pass forwardly on conveyor 9, they are selected and discarded ones are placed on the conveyor [5 for discharge from the machine ,by way of spout [6. When the remaining onions reach the directing strip [4a, they are discharged laterally onto the forward end of conveyor l1, the smallest onions passing under sizing roller [9 into the bag-holding receiving hopper 28. The remaining onions will pass forwardly on conveyor 11, medium sized ones thereof passing under sizing roller 28 onto conveyor 26 and the remaining larger size ones passing laterally onto conveyor 21. Such onions as pass under the rear end portion of sizing roller 28 are directed laterally by the chute 32 onto conveyor 26.

The onions conveyed laterally by each of the conveyors 26 and 21 will be discharged into one of a pair of bags supported by the holders 30 associated with that conveyor, the particular bag receiving the onions depending upon the position in which the associated chute 30a is disposed. When one bag is filled, the chute may be reversed to fill the bag associated with the other bag holder of the pair, and in this way the sorting operation may be expeditiously and continuously carried on.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the machine is such as to effectively carry out the stated objects of the invention, and the latter is susceptible to various changes and modifications which fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

What I claim as new is:

A portable onion sorting machine for use in the field comprising a Wheeled frame, a relatively wide endless horizontal feeding conveyor carried by the frame, a receiving hopper mounted at one end of said feeding conveyor below the latter, an elevating conveyor for transferring the onions from the receiving hopper onto the feeding conveyor, a relatively narrow endless horizontal sorting conveyor disposed along one side of the feeding conveyor and having an upper flight inclined laterally away from the feeding conveyor, means to retain the onions on the feeding conveyor until they approach the other end of the latter, means for directing the onions from the other end of the feeding conveyor onto the adjacent end of the sorting conveyor, sizing rollers mounted at the outer side of the sorting conveyor, one of said sizing rollers being disposed to first permit the passage of onions of smaller size thereunder, the other sizing roller being disposed to permit passage of medium sized onions thereunder, means to direct onions of larger size laterally from the sorting conveyor near its other end, means for driving said conveyors in opposite directions, and a further relatively narrow endless horizontal conveyor disposed along the other side of the feeding conveyor for receiving discarded onions picked from the feeding conveyor and discharging them at the end of the machine remote from the hopper.

DAVID EDWARD CIRULI. 

